Electrike Line/RSE
Electrike is found on Route 110 and Route 118 in Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald. Manectric can also be found in all games on Route 118. Arguably the most popular Electric-type in all Hoenn nuzlockes, both for availability and usefulness reasons. The Electric-type itself is ever popular amongst nuzlockers, due to its usefulness against the ever-present Water-types - especially in the 7.8/10 Too Much Water region - and having only one, relatively uncommon weakness that is not featured in any of the boss battles in the game. The Electrike line surely lives up to the general reputation Electric-types have: fast and hard-hitting, but fairly frail on both ends of the spectrum (physical and special). That said, Manectric's purpose is that of knocking out its enemies before they can fight back, and if used that way, it will not need to worry about its frailty at all. Important Matchups - Emerald = * Rival (Route 110): Unless Electrike is trained all the way up to Spark level, making it any useful in this fight will be hard. Assuming Spark, Wingull will be an easy OHKO. Lombre is averagely 3HKOed by Spark, and its moves are not that strong at all; Slugma is 2HKOed. The rival's starter is better off handled by someone else; Grovyle will be faster and resists Electric moves, Marshtomp will laugh at Electrike's attempts to do damage, and Combusken can take multiple Sparks and KO Electrike in two turns with Double Kick. * Wally (Mauville City): An Electrike with Spark will 2HKO Ralts easily, and Thunderbolt even OHKOs. Without either move, Quick Attack can only outdamage Confusion before Ralts starts using Growl, so it is recommended to have STAB moves before facing Wally. * Gym #3 - Wattson (Mauville City, Electric-type): Not a good matchup. Electrike can 3HKO Wattson's Electrike if it already knows Thunderbolt, and that is it. Against Voltorb, Magneton and Manectric, Electrike stands no chances; Voltorb knows Selfdestruct, and both Magneton and Manectric deal far more damage than Electrike with their Shock Wave. * Tabitha (Mt. Chimney): Tabitha's two Numel are immune to Spark, but only the second one is off limits for both Electrike and Manectric, as it knows Magnitude; the leading one does not, so Quick Attack will eventually wear it down if there are no other good options on the team. Poochyena is non-threatening, so Spark will 2HKO at worst and Thunderbolt is a certain OHKO; Zubat is fried by either move. * Maxie (Mt. Chimney): Mightyena can be beaten by either an Electrike that outspeeds and knows Thunderbolt, or a Manectric; Bite and (Electrike's) Thunderbolt are both 3HKOs, though Sand-Attack may get in the way of Electrike's victory regardless. Manectric simply 2HKOs with Thunderbolt or 3HKOs with Spark. Zubat is OHKOable even by Electrike's Spark. Neither Electrike nor Manectric should go against Camerupt. * Gym #4 - Flannery (Lavaridge Town, Fire-type): Manectric OHKOs Slugma with Thunderbolt. It also 2HKOs Torkoal and can take an Overheat from it, if Sunny Day is not up; however, Attract and/or Body Slam paralysis may get in the way of Manectric (only male ones in the first case). Numel and Camerupt are also unapproachable for Manectric; the former has Magnitude, and the latter has Sunny Day and Overheat, as well as Electric immunity. Any attempt at defeating Camerupt with Manectric will result in giving it setup fodder, so play carefully and prepare a backup when necessary. * Gym #5 - Norman (Petalburg City, Normal-type): Manectric can beat Spinda, Vigoroth and Linoone by 2HKOing them all with Thunderbolt; their STAB moves are all moves that Manectric can take multiple hits of. The Slaking can also be 3HKOed, as its Facade is still a 2HKO, though Manectric cannot solo Norman unless healed in between fights; there is also the risk of Thunderbolt paralysing Slaking, thereby turning Facade into a deadly OHKO. * Shelly (Weather Institute): Carvanha is easily OHKOed with Thunderbolt and Mightyena is 2HKOed, though Swagger may become a problem if Manectric cannot break through confusion for two or more consecutive turns; heal or switch out as needed. * Rival (Route 119): Pelipper and Slugma are OHKOed by Thunderbolt, whereas Lombre is 2HKOed, but still risk-free. Grovyle can be 3HKOed too, but its Leaf Blade has a high chance of scoring critical hits, and a regular hit on top of a critical one will off Manectric; Marshtomp is also too strong. Combusken can be 2HKOed easily. * Gym #6 - Winona (Fortree City, Flying-type): Manectric OHKOs Swablu, Pelipper and Skarmory with Thunderbolt, and also 2-3HKOs Tropius, but needs to switch out against Altaria, whose Earthquake can 2HKO or even OHKO after a Dragon Dance. * Rival (Lilycove City): Pelipper and Slugma are OHKOed by Thunderbolt; Tropius and Ludicolo can be 3HKOed without risks. Grovyle is a potential 3HKO, providing Leaf Blade never scores a critical hit, which is still a risk; Marshtomp is impossible, though Combusken is 2HKOed without problems. * Tabitha (Jagged Pass Hideout): Numel is 2HKOed by Strength if Manectric has several levels of advantage over it, but should otherwise be fought by a more appropriate Pokémon. Thunderbolt OHKOs Mightyena and Zubat. Camerupt has no Ground moves, so it can be worn down with Strength in an average of about four turns. * Maxie (Jagged Pass Hideout): Mightyena is 2HKOed by Thunderbolt, but Manectric should be wary of its Swagger if it hits. Crobat is 1-2HKOed as well, though once again, Confuse Ray is a problem, especially if Mightyena has boosted Manectric's Attack before; it is preferable to switch out before fighting Crobat, in that case, since it will likely outspeed. Camerupt has Earthquake, avoid it. * Matt (Lilycove Hideout): Mightyena is 2HKOed by Thunderbolt, but Swagger-induced confusion can get in the way; healing or switching out as needed is advised, especially as it is cost-free, since Mightyena has no damaging moves. Golbat goes down easily. * Gym #7 - Tate and Liza (Mossdeep City, Psychic-type): Manectric can perform well in this gym, but it needs to wait until Claydol is out cold, and also requires a battle partner that is faster than Lunatone; Claydol's Earthquake comes close to OHKOing Manectric. If Manectric manages to sub in after Claydol is defeated, or uses Bite on it and lets its battle partner seal the KO afterwards, it can then OHKO Xatu with Thunderbolt or 2HKO after one Calm Mind. Lunatone's Psychic 2HKOs Manectric, unlike Solrock's, which only 3HKOs; Manectric's Thunderbolt 3HKOs Lunatone and 2HKOs Solrock, respectively. If Manectric's battle partner can KO Lunatone in one turn, aided by Manectric's Thunderbolt, taking down Solrock afterwards will become much easier, since Solrock knows neither Calm Mind nor Light Screen. * Maxie and Tabitha (Mossdeep Space Center, tag battle with Steven): As Maxie's Mightyena is relatively non-threatening, its main asset being Swagger, Manectric can attempt to take down Tabitha's Camerupt with Strength first; it will be a 3-4HKO, but Camerupt knows no STAB moves, and thus cannot inflict much damage. Afterwards, Tabitha's Mightyena and Golbat should be 2HKOed and OHKOed respectively. If Maxie's Mightyena has stayed alive throughout, this will simplify the face-off against the rest of Maxie's team; Crobat can be 2HKOed easily with Thunderbolt if Manectric is not confused, but Camerupt knows Earthquake, which is no job for Manectric. * Shelly (Seafloor Cavern): OHKO Sharpedo and 2HKO Mightyena with Thunderbolt, barring Swagger shenanigans. * Archie (Seafloor Cavern): Mightyena and Crobat can both pull confusion hax with Swagger and Confuse Ray respectively; Crobat is the most dangerous, due to likely outspeeding Manectric, but Manectric will be fine if its Attack is at a neutral modifier (not boosted by Swagger) when it faces Crobat. Thunderbolt 2HKOs both of them. * Gym #8 - Juan (Sootopolis City, Water-type): Manectric can OHKO Luvdisc, Sealeo and Crawdaunt with Thunderbolt, which also 2HKOs Seaking and Milotic. It needs to avoid Whiscash, due to Earthquake. Kingdra can be 3HKOed, and also 3HKOs with Water Pulse or Ice Beam; its Double Team is the main issue with the matchup, as a single miss will compromise Manectric's victory, unless it also knows Shock Wave. * Wally (Victory Road): His lead is a Dragon Dance Altaria... whose only physical move is Aerial Ace. Thunderbolt 3HKOs it easily, and it can also 2HKO Delcatty. Roselia is best handled with a physical move, such as Strength, which can 3HKO; even then, its Giga Drain will allow it to recover a consistent amount of HP, and Poison Point can activate, so Manectric should preferably let another Pokémon fight Roselia. Thunderbolt also 3HKOs Magneton, though Manectric should be wary of the combination it can pull off with Supersonic and Screech. Manectric should not fight Gardevoir, whose Psychic is a 2HKO in its natural state, and it also knows Calm Mind to further boost its power; Synchronize will also pass on paralysis to Manectric if it attempts to Thunder Wave it, though this can be a good parting shot before switching out, as it makes it harder for Gardevoir to set up. * Elite Four Sidney (Ever Grande City, Dark-type): Thunderbolt can 1-2HKO Mightyena, OHKO Crawdaunt and 2HKO Absol. It also 3HKOs Cacturne and Shiftry, despite their resistance, though Shiftry is best offed more quickly, since its Double Team can otherwise cause trouble. * Elite Four Phoebe (Ever Grande City, Ghost-type): Thunderbolt 2HKOs all of Phoebe's Pokémon. Manectric can take multiple hits from them, exception made for the ace Dusclops; Manectric can take one Earthquake coming off it, but not more. If healed throughout, Manectric can take on the majority of this team, but not the entirety of it. * Elite Four Glacia (Ever Grande City, Ice-type): Manectric can 2HKO the lead Glalie with Thunderbolt, providing it does not use Light Screen. If it does, Thunderbolt becomes a 2HKO, and its Ice Beam will outdamage, turning the fight into a screen stall. Without Light Screen up, Manectric can also easily OHKO both of the Sealeo and 2HKO Walrein, though it needs to be well above half health before facing Walrein, as its Surf is a potential 2HKO. Manectric also needs to avoid the second Glalie, which will kill it with Explosion. * Elite Four Drake (Ever Grande City, Dragon-type): Thunderbolt averagely 3HKOs both Shelgon and Altaria, neither of which can even 4HKO Manectric; it gets outmatched by Flygon, however, which knows Earthquake. Kingdra should preferably be paralysed with Thunder Wave first, as it can use SmokeScreen to nerf Manectric's accuracy and Dragon Dance to boost its offensive power; Thunderbolt averages as a 2-3HKO, like Kingdra's Surf, so fighting Kingdra with Manectric is dangerous unless Manectric is kept healed constantly, and even then critical hits can get it. A teammate that can take down Kingdra aided by paralysis would be optimal. Salamence is dangerous; its Dragon Claw is almost as likely to 2HKO as it is to 3HKO, and Thunderbolt 3HKOs it, so it should be left to a Pokémon that can take it down in one or two hits, if possible. * Champion Wallace (Ever Grande City, Water-type): Thunderbolt is unlikely to OHKO Wailord, but it will deal more than enough damage to power down its Water Spout and finish it off on the second turn. Tentacruel and Milotic can both be 2HKOed, but they also 2HKO with Hydro Pump and Surf respectively, so a critical hit will actually end Manectric; in addition, specimen with a Speed-lowering nature may be outsped by Tentacruel (though not by Milotic) and thus lose the matchup from the start. Gyarados is OHKOed easily, but Ludicolo is only 3HKOed and should be taken on by a teammate that can get the job done faster, as its Double Team and Leech Seed combination will otherwise make the fight a living hell. Whiscash must be avoided, as it has Earthquake. * Post-Game: Who cares about the postgame? }} Moves When found on Route 110, Electrike starts with Tackle, Thunder Wave, Leer and Howl. It then gets Quick Attack at level 17. The first few levels of grinding will probably be tedious, as it will not do a lot of damage with Normal moves; however, it will get better as soon as it hits level 20, when it learns Spark. A base-65 power STAB move like that goes a long way in Hoenn; it will be everything Manectric needs until it can get the Thunderbolt TM, which is a move that Electrike sadly does not learn by level. Most of its other moves are forgettable until the later levels: there is the absolutely unnecessary Odor Sleuth at level 25 (why, Gamefreak?), then the long awaited evolution, and the next move comes at level 31 in the form of... Roar. Which, very obviously, Manectric will never want to use due its low bulk and the negative priority of the move; if Manectric is in the lead, and currently facing an opponent it cannot handle, just switch out rather than using Roar. Level 39 offers another mildly useful move, Bite, which can be combined with Thunder Wave for some paraflinch hax; an opponent that is paralyzed during the turn Manectric uses Bite has a 65% chance of not being able to attack in that turn. However, paraflinch techniques are not recommended, due to being based off pure luck. It should also be noted that a super effective Bite is still less powerful than STAB Thunderbolt, which Manectric should have learned by now (after doing the New Mauville sidequest, if not through the Game Corner purchase). At level 45 comes Thunder, a plausible addition to the moveset if Manectric is running a Rain Dance set, but not otherwise; 70% accuracy is simply not enough for a frail Pokémon to rely on. Lastly, at level 53, it learns Charge, which has next to no use because, in this generation, it only doubles the base damage done by the Electric move used in the following turn, without boosting the user's Special Defense. Manectric can get a better damage output by using the same move twice, instead of Charging and then using it on the second turn. The TM pool is relatively limited, but contains most of what a Manectric will need. Thunderbolt is a mandatory move to have, especially if Manectric is not running a Rain Dance set; the latter, however, is still a viable option with Thunder, but be sure to set up against an enemy Manectric can take a hit from, and they will not be numerous in general. Return and Iron Tail can work as slot fillers, if Manectric happens to have decent Attack. Toxic is also an option if Manectric has relatively good defenses, or no other moves to fill its remaining slots with; keep in mind, however, that Manectric will probably not live long enough to Toxic-stall, so it will still need to pass the fight on to a sturdy teammate to kill the opponent the slow and steady way. Hidden Power is also worth a try with the Rain Dance set, just in case its type is Water and its base power is good enough (60+). Recommended movesets: ''Standard: Thunder Wave, Bite, Thunderbolt, Quick Attack / Return / Iron Tail'' ''Rain Dance: Thunder Wave, Rain Dance, Thunder, Quick Attack / Return / Iron Tail / Thunderbolt / Hidden Power Water'' Recommended Teammates * Pokémon that are good against Ground-types: Grass-types are best to counter Ground-types with, but only if they do maintain their Ground resistance; Grass/Poison-types do not perform as well, particularly without consistent physical bulk. Some dual Flying-types, such as Gyarados, may do a better job than Grass/Poison-types; Normal/Flying ones, instead, should be wary of the Rock coverage Ground-types may have, and are therefore at a disadvantage compared to their non-Normal cousins. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Sceptile, Swampert, Ludicolo, Pelipper, Bellossom, Skarmory, Flygon, Altaria, Whiscash, Claydol, Tropius * Physical tanks: Manectric's defensive prowess is not great on either side. Several physical sweepers are strong, which introduces a requirement of at least one physical tank on the team; it should also not be weak to Ground moves, since shared weaknesses can be problematic. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Swampert, Slaking, Weezing, Sandslash, Skarmory, Whiscash, Cradily, Donphan, Walrein * Special tanks: Like Manectric's Defense, its Special Defense is also not good. Unlike physically bulky Pokémon, though, specially bulky ones are really easy to come by, courtesy of the many Water-types and Psychic-types sporting good Special Defense. Water-types help the most, since they provide an answer to Manectric's most hated Ground-types. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Swampert, Ludicolo, Gardevoir, Gyarados, Grumpig, Altaria, Whiscash, Claydol, Cradily, Milotic, Walrein Other Electrike's stats Manectric's stats * What Nature do I want? Modest is the best possible outcome for this line, but any other nature that boosts Special Attack will work very well. Mild, Rash, even Quiet - they all are excellent options. On occasion, they might actually be better than Modest as Manectric has decent Attack, and could carry a physical move as a filler; Quiet has the privilege of not nerfing the already fairly frail defenses further, but at the expense of risking to not be able to outspeed some of the fastest foes. * What Ability do I want? Static is not incredible, but it is still more useful than Lightningrod, which has no effect whatsoever in this generation. * At what point in the game should I be evolved? Before Flannery is probably a good time to have a Manectric, even if it is not scheduled to battle against her; Thunderbolt will work great as backup, especially if the team does not have other reliable answers to Torkoal's Overheat. * How good is the Electrike line in a Nuzlocke? Very good within its scope, though not an all-round problem solver. It is by far the best Electric-type available in Hoenn, and offers a good enough answer to Psychic-types, thanks to Bite; however, it will not do much against Pokémon that are both hard-hitting and specially bulky, or any sort of Ground-type. * Weaknesses: Ground * Resistances: Electric, Flying, Steel * Immunities: None * Neutralities: Normal, Fire, Water, Grass, Bug, Ice, Ghost, Psychic, Fighting, Dragon, Dark, Rock, Poison Category:Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald Category:List of Evolutionary Lines with Completed Analyses